David Walliams is enjoying the sun on a luxury Maldives holiday with his son after his publisher dropped him over claims he had harassed female members of staff.
Walliams, 54, was first accused of inappropriate behaviour towards HarperCollins employees in 2023, prompting a major internal investigation, it was revealed yesterday.
One member of staff reached a five-figure settlement over the alleged harassment and left the firm, while others were told not to travel to Walliams’ house and to work with him in pairs, the Telegraph reported.
The comedian and former Britain’s Got Talent judge has denied the allegations against him.
Harper Collins confirmed it had taken the decision ‘not to publish any new titles by David Walliams’.
Despite the latest storm engulfing Walliams, one of the most successful children’s authors in the UK, he is understood to be currently on a break in the Maldives with his 12-year-old son, Alfred.
In a series of what appear to be sponsored Instagram posts, Walliams is shown scuba diving, swimming and enjoying afternoon tea while tagging the Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa resort.
One clip sees Walliams scuba diving with a turtle, set to music from the Bond thriller You Only Live Twice and posted with the caption ‘a dream’.
Walliams, 54, was first accused of inappropriate behaviour towards HarperCollins employees in 2023, prompting a major internal investigation, it was revealed yesterday
He is now holidaying in the Maldives (pictured) with his son Alfred, before spending Christmas without his child
The comedian and former Britain’s Got Talentjudge has denied the allegations against him
A second post is captioned ‘floating in heaven’ while a third describes the resort as Walliams’ ‘new favourite place in the world’ and ‘complete and utter perfection’. The resort has reshared his posts on their own Instagram page.
Photos show the former Britain’s Got Talent judge enjoying tea, cocktails and biscuits at the resort, where villas for this week cost as much as $6,105 per night – around £4,563.
But while Walliams was enjoying the kind of pre-Christmas getaway many can only dream of, claims were published last night about his alleged harassment of young women at HarperCollins.
A junior colleague is said to have complained about his behaviour in 2023, prompting interviews with staff who worked with Mr Walliams, with the investigation reportedly involving an in-house lawyer.
One of the women who raised concerns was allegedly given a five-figure payout and has since left the company.
Former employees also described how they were advised to work in pairs when meeting with him and told not to visit his home.
The decision to drop Walliams comes after the sudden departure of former UK CEO Charlie Redmayne in October. He has since been replaced by Kate Elton.
Last night, a spokesperson for Walliams denied any wrong doing. They said: ‘David has never been informed of any allegations raised against him by HarperCollins.
In a series of what appear to be sponsored Instagram posts, Walliams is shown scuba diving, swimming and enjoying afternoon tea while tagging the Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa resort
Photos show the former Britain’s Got Talent judge enjoying tea, cocktails and biscuits at the resort, where villas for this week cost as much as $6,105 per night
Photos show Walliams strolling on the beach, scuba diving and floating in the pool
The decision to drop Walliams comes after the sudden departure of former UK CEO Charlie Redmayne in October
‘He was not party to any investigation or given any opportunity to answer questions. David strongly denies that he has behaved inappropriately and is taking legal advice.’
A spokesman for HarperCollins said: ‘After careful consideration, and under the leadership of its new CEO, HarperCollins UK has decided not to publish any new titles by David Walliams. The author is aware of this decision.
‘HarperCollins takes employee wellbeing extremely seriously and has processes in place for reporting and investigating concerns. To respect the privacy of individuals we do not comment on internal matters.’
The children’s author, who began writing books in 2008, has published more than 40 works which have been translated into 55 languages and sold more than 60 million copies.
HarperCollins published his first children’s book, The Boy in the Dress, in 2008, while some of his other books, including Gangsta Granny and Billionaire Boy, have also been adapted into television films.
While Mr Walliams was once TV royalty, a string of scandals in recent years have seen him step back from the spotlight.
The comedian left Britain’s Got Talent when vile sexual comments he made about female contestants emerged.
In 2022, a leaked transcript revealed that he called one auditioning contestant a ‘c**’ and said of another: ‘she thinks you want to f*** her, but you don’t’.
While Walliams was enjoying the kind of pre-Christmas getaway many can only dream of, claims were published last night about his alleged harassment of young women at HarperCollins
The children’s author, who began writing books in 2008, has published more than 40 works which have been translated into 55 languages and sold more than 60 million copies
The comments, made in January 2020 during auditions at the London Palladium, were picked up on the programme’s microphones.
Mr Walliams apologised at the time the comments became public and acknowledged they were ‘disrespectful’, adding they were part of a private conversation that was ‘never intended to be shared’.
He later left the show and sued the the production company Fremantle for misuse of private information and breaching data laws. The company apologised and Walliams is thought to have walked away with about £5 million.
It was revealed by the Mail last week that alarm bells were also raised with ITV bosses after they learned Walliams had a habit of inviting fans back to his dressing room and dishing out cupcakes.
He has not truly returned to primetime since, despite his books continuing to be a hit and reportedly making up more than 40 per cent of revenue for Harper Collins’ children’s department in 2018.
By 2019, it was estimated that he and HarperCollins had sold £100 million of his books.
But his book sales have since been on the decline, falling by more than 60 percent this summer.
The showbiz giant behind the show, Simon Cowell, is said to have since gone to great lengths to distance himself from Mr Walliams, with the pair ‘no longer on speaking terms at all’.
In June this year, it was reported the author made two Nazi salutes during a recording of the Christmas edition of the BBC’s comedy panel show Would I Lie To You?.
The comedian apparently ‘jokingly’ made the salutes while Call the Midwife actress Helen George was telling a story from her time on Strictly Come Dancing in 2015.
The host, Rob Brydon, condemned Walliams and reminded him that the show went out before the watershed.
However, as George continued to explain her Strictly story, Walliams is said to have made the gesture for a second time, this time with a sexual twist.
Walliams’s team captain, Lee Mack was said to have looked unimpressed while one audience member revealed the the salutes landed ‘awkwardly’.
The former Little Britain star is now said to be facing Christmas alone and apart from his son, Alfred, 12.
He co-parents Alfred with ex-wife Lara Stone after the couple divorced in 2015 following a five-year marriage.
Mr Walliams remains single while ex Ms Stone has since found love with her property developer husband of four years, David Grievson.
